 | |
| Formation | November 13, 1982 (1982-11-13) |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Cape Coral,Florida |
Executive Director | Thomas Ascol |
| Website | founders |
Formerly called | Southern Baptist Founders Conference |
| Southern Baptists |
|---|
Founders Ministries, previously known as theSouthern Baptist Founders Conference, is aReformed Baptist group within theSouthern Baptist Convention in the United States. Its goal is to return Southern Baptists to what it considers their Calvinist roots,[1][2] and it has contributed to theSouthern Baptist Convention conservative resurgence. The executive director isThomas Ascol.
The Southern Baptist Founders Conference was established in 1982, holding its first annual conference in 1983.[3] The organization which developed was renamed Founders Ministries in 1998.[4] As of 2007, there were 807 subscribing congregations in the United States.[5]
According to Nathan Finn, non-Calvinists within the Southern Baptist Convention "seem to be especially concerned with the influence of Founders Ministries."[6] Critics argue that Southern Baptists have never been Calvinistic. Tom Ascol, Executive Director of Founders Ministries, stated a majority of the founders of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1845 held to thedoctrines of grace.[7]
Founders Ministries has operated Founders Press since 1983,[8] and publishesFounders Journal, a quarterly journal established in 1990.
In December 2020, Founders Ministries established theInstitute of Public Theology, which has undergraduate and certificate programs.[9] In January 2025, Founders Ministries establishedFounders Seminary, a residential seminary inCape Coral, Florida. Ascol,Voddie Baucham, and Tom Nettles were the founding faculty.[10]